US doctors release flu, COVID-19, RSV vaccine advice

US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (R) looks on as President Donald Trump speaks before signing an executive order calling for more research and flexibility on vaccines, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 10, 2026. [Credit: AFP]

A coalition of United States medical groups published vaccine guidance for seasonal respiratory viruses on Wednesday, seeking to provide clear advice amid delayed federal recommendations and a lack of confidence in the vaccine-sceptic Trump administration.

The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention typically provides a similar annual update of vaccine recommendations. Still, the process has been disrupted this year by lawsuits over policy shifts made under Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr.

Medical associations have repeatedly voiced opposition to steps taken by the Federal Government under Kennedy, which they say run counter to scientific consensus.

The coalition, which includes the American Medical Association and American Academy of Pediatrics, issued vaccine guidance for influenza, Covid-19 and Respiratory Syncytial Virus, which vary by age group and other factors, such as pregnancy.

Recent scientific studies have also raised no new health concerns related to vaccines for the viruses, the coalition said, citing an independent review conducted by the University of Minnesota’s Vaccine Integrity Project (VIP).

The federal government has only issued guidance for the flu, extending its guidance from 2025.

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“Patients need and deserve vaccine recommendations that are clear, credible, and based on the best available scientific evidence, so they can make informed vaccine decisions for themselves and for their families,” AMA president-elect Sandra Fryhofer told a press conference.

Vaccination rates in the United States have fallen since the Covid-19 pandemic and a subsequent wave of misinformation.

Since last year, Kennedy has launched a sweeping overhaul of vaccination policy, notably ceasing to recommend the hepatitis B vaccine for all newborns and changing recommendations for COVID-19 and measles vaccines.

However, many of the measures were suspended in March by a federal judge, who ruled that the government had disregarded science-based methods — a decision that has hampered the work of the expert panel advising the CDC on vaccination recommendations.